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ENTERED ACCORDING TO THE ACT OF CONGRESS, IN THE 
YEAR 1904, BY DEWITT C, VESTAL IN THE OFFICE OF 
THE LIBRARIAN, AT WASHINGTON. 



On ''NEW THOUGHT" 



Dedicated to 
G. W. HENNING 






By DEWITT C. VESTAL. 



Lf6R,AWV .-f CONG«ESS 
Two Cttpies Received 

FEB 18 1904 

A Copyright Entry 
CLASS 






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^ COPY B ; 








4 1! 

.1.N OLDEN TIME when the Earth was young, 
X And man was not; Nor life had sprung 

' From out the Ooze and warring strife" 

Of Natures Primal unfolding plan : 
A creature came evolved from light and heal 

and air — 
Out from the ^ sea when it began 
Its journey on this revolving ball. 
But what the shape, or what the size, 
Or whether wings or feet or eyes 
Tis not for me to now recall. 
One thing we know in knowledge then, 
It did not rank with modern men. 
On with the ages the Creature came, 
Seeking for truth, and wisdom and power. 



(2^i|OUjgltt2 



With soul on lire, and eyes aflame, 

Groping, hoping from hour to hour ; 

To solve the mystery that ever hung, 

A brooding, crushing, dire suspense, 

Enveloping the soul and ever flung 

A cloud of doubt — 'twas ignorance ! ! 

Experience came, as it it always comes 

To every man or beast or bird, 

And with it wisdom or evil drums 

A doleful train of woes unheard . 

Wisdom, thought, hope, love and life. 

Would well equip a wondering germ 

To voyage along the way of strife. 

Who can tell when the race began? 

What was the form the Creature bore? 

Can we b'e sure 'twas in form of man? 

Or reptilian horrid or evasive spore? 

To us that live 'tis of little worth. 

The force that drew from the unknown past 

A germ could as easy form the Earth ; 

The sea and sun, the air's surrounding blast. 

What recks it? the infinite plan 

Designed that we should call it, man. 



(!IIj0uijlits 



And man thus formed from out the sod 

Gazed upon nature and called it God. 

And God became the unknown power ! 

That held man's all and cheering hope. 

And God was good in sheen and shower, 

And filled all space and universal scope. 

And God was good and filled all space. 

In all, over all, his spirit flew. 

Where then can th' Devel find a place 

To locate Hell and his horrid Crew? 

God is good and groping man 

Begins to see the unfolding light. 

In its true sense and know the plan 

The law of love and truth and right. 

'Twas man that gave our god a name, 

For God through Nature said "1 am," 

And man through passion, fear, and shame, 

Gave God the power to bless or damn, 

Thus the attributes and e'en the form 

Of those below were placed on high, 

And demons rode amidst the storm 

And formed a part of Diety. 



(lllimiijtjtii «.^ 



If it be true that man received 

Knowledge from experience dire. 

Ignorance would lead him to believe 

In teachings false of Hell and fire. 

That the soul is prone to love 'tis true. 

But the soul is formed to hate, 

So love would yield celestial dew 

While hate would leave us desolate. 

So heaven is formed for those we love, 

And Hell is formed for those we fear. 

So came the teachings from above ; 

Eye for eye and tear for tear. 

So man groped on from age to age 

And followed wisdom's feeble ray, 

And sought the light in every page, 

Of earth or sea or Heaven's illumined way ! 

0, man was man, and not divine, 

He by evolution was held in thrall ; 

Erst-while he preached a way sublime; 

He was himself inclined to fall. 

'Tis plain that D*^ath a blessing came 

To give to each a right of way. 



(ElfnuQl^lB <^ 



The man with genius and soul aflame, 

And he that loves the sodden clay ; 

All formed by nature's plan divine, 

All a part of the unknown scheme. 

But why one soul should be sublime, 

Or why another should be the theme, 

For jibe, and jest, and mirth for all, 

Is more than man shall ever know ; 

On Earth benighted by the fall, 

Or in the Heaven's surrounding glow. 

O man was made to strive, and toil. 

And by selection gain the race. 

Or whether he burns the midnight oil, 

Or whether he serves at throne of grace 

No matter, he must toil to win. 

'Twas so midst Eden's shady bowers, 

'Twas so, but not because of sin, 

'Twas Nature's boon to bless the hours 

And give him happiness and home. 

For all that do not work and strive. 

Must a savage or slave become. 

With naught to bless or make him thrive. 



®lynu5l|tii J' 



Thus rise my thoughts or old or new? 

They come as inspirations come ! 

To cheer the heart and give a clew, 

By which to reach our final home. 

So God is good and fills all space, 

Has knowledge, love, infinite power? 

Then the Devil can have no place 

To while away a lonely hour. 

The evil one could not presume 

To live and love within our God, 

Or how could Hell or Heaven bloom, 

From out one stem like Aaron's rod? 

The Evil One is ignorance ! ! ! 

For **sin is breaking of the law,*' 

And who but man could so dispense 

Out justice to man here below. 

We can only judge the present 

By what has passed in ages gone, 

So grows the tree, so blooms the flower, 

So lives each plant within its zone, 

Thus we see that law supreme 

Guides each species now and here. 



Jt> Stujuylrtis 



Then is the past a fleeting dream? 

Was Nature operating then and there? 

So we find no home for Hell, 

No place for the Devil dire, 

That man from Spore 'fintisimal 

Sprung not from sodden mire . 

That Redemption comes not through blood 

But through the love of man for man. 

That the name of God means only good, 

Man formed the name when speech began. 

That all the attributes of Him 

Who formed the earth, and formed the sky, 

Was formulate of savage grim, 

As smote the Jews both hip and thigh. 

Nor love was taught in olden time. 

But e3''e for eye and tooth for tooth, 

'Twas only Jesus spake sublime, 

And taught us love's eternal truth. 

Nor was it true when Moses writ 

That curses fell on busy hands : 

For blessings come from anvil's note 

Or from the smiling v/ealth of Lands. 



0Jl|ou9l;tB 



Labor a Curse ! did you ever see 

The humming bird in wondrous flight? 

See him glow with Ecstasy 

When sporting in the rainbows light; 

As on swift wing in water fall 

He takes his early morning bath, 

And all regardless of the fall 

Or death's destroying avenging wrath? 

Thus the Eagle who soars on high 

Follows with glee his destiny ! 

So the earth worm though doomed to lie 

la the dust does so uncomplainingly. 

And so the Angels if they should soar 

Unnumbered leagues on ambient wing, 

Do so through labor's cursed roar. 

Or else 'tis nothing does the thing ! ! 

Not from eating an apple up 

As told in tale of Genesis, 

'Twas from sipping pleasure's Cup, 

In that was heard the serpent's hiss ! ! 

Why not, if man created God 

When brain was formed and speech was given? 



vUllou^llti 



Through evolution's blooming rod 

Why not ascend a way to Heaven? 

The study of the rocks has told 

A tale of wonder and a tale that's true, 

That age upon age the Earth is old 

So the sun and the celestial blue. 

Think not thou, my sinner bold, 

That I discard from Holy writ 

The ten Commandments hoar and old ; 

Nor yet the last, more blessed yet. 

Nor any truth from source divine, 

Nor any truth by rocks laid bare. 

Nor truths that through the lightning shine. 

In earthquake's march nor tempest's blare. 

Truth is sought by every honest man 

Because he loves the simple truth, 

Not truth that's partly true and partly sham. 

To fleece the old and beguile the youth. 

'Tis time that man should wake ! arise ! 

Filled with thought that's new and free. 

And seek a way to paradise 

Illumined with more than sanctity. 



QIl^uugl|ta J- 



Dream not that man can be redeemed 

By the shedding of blood alone ! 

The world hath changed nor had it dreamed 

That Freedom's light should thus be shown, 

A guide for halting man the way ; 

That leads from doubt to liberty, 

When he can choose his time to pray 

Nor have a fear of Deity. 

For God is Love ! so Nature speaks 

In mercy Nature lets us die. 

If some should live, celestial freaks 

Ene man or beast or bird or fly — 

No matter what but choose the fly, 

Exempt had been from curse of Death 

And they had lived nor could not die, 

But grew and bred with constant breath ; 

What now would be the human lot 

With flies above of Nimrod's time 

And flies when Esau was begot, 

And flies that sailed on Noah's line, 

Flies six thousand years and more. 



Sltimigiyta 



Of Pedigree of old Divine — 

Defying storm and ocean's roar 

A floating spectacle all sublime, 

Would sail between the Earth and Sun 

And make it Death for man below ! 

How could he breathe or stand or run 

Or be Redeemed if it were so? 

But the Holy Man who eats his bread 

Buttered by sweat of another's brow, 

Can swallow all that Moses said 

Or all that's Orthodoxic now. 

And now as ever to enquiring thought 

Points with scorn at every soul, 

Struggling to find the light that's sought 

To illuminate and bless us all. 

0, who can check the thoughts that flow 

Through every free and living brain? 

Questions that strike like sudden blows 

Which smites the engine that moves the train ! 

Who is God? How came He? and when? 

Was He himself made by himself? 

And is He just an eternal Elf? 



(Ui^OUgt^tB 



Was He formed from nothingness? 

Or was it light that darkness threw? 

Or was it just from blessedness 

A sort of Angelic saintly stew? 

Tell me ye Saintly smiling crew 

That treats with scorn the coming light ! 

Dare ye to stifle all thought that's new 

And force us back to days of night? 

Do you want to hear the orphan's cry? 

The widow's lament of saddened woe? 

Do you want again to see men die? 

And see the blood of disenters flow? 

Once more have Hell turned loose on Earth 

And have the Heavens to weep again? 

Because of bigotry and of death? 

And fill the world with wrath and pain ! ! ! 

Dare ye to strive to bind again 

The souls of men in triple chains? 

And cumber the Earth with mounds of slain 

Because of thought in Freemen's brain? 

Dare 3^e to seize God's noble free 

As ye did Servetius pure and good 

And burned them with song and glee 

And give them time with greener wood? 



Wl}atx^t& 



Dare ye to seize them as Calvin did 
Because they said the Earth was round 
And roast them for a m.orning rib 
Because they want but level ground 
Do you want the Duke of Alva here 
With cross and stole and sword and saw 
To freeze the heretic with abject fear? 
And strike our liberties again a blow ! ! ! 
When Wickliff' s bones in wrath was thrown 
And rests ene now in Avon's tide, 
And Cranmer who perished without a groan 
And Myriads who for thought had died? 
Where now would rest fair Freedom's fane? 
Where would the toiling millions stand 
If Sweeden's Hosts had fought in vain 
And not redeemed the German Land? 
All, all were lost and prince and priest 
In sodden pride and vulgar power, 
Would soon have made of man a beast 
Or sunk him down a little lower, 
O Columbia up and arise ! 
Blessed by freedom rising tide 
And sweep the darkness from the skies 
And give us Light our way to guide ! 



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